In 1996, Brian Tyler became the first driver in 39 years to win the USAC National Sprint title without a single feature victory. In 1997, he set out after new records, and won his 2nd straight title on the strength of 4 feature event wins and 19 Top Ten feature finishes in only 27 races. In 1998, Tyler made the jump to the IRL and the IndyCar series.
Although competing in the IRL, Tyler still competed in the USAC Silver Crown division and scored his 1st feature victory on his way to 2nd place in the series standings. During the 2009 season, Tyler entered among elite company, making his 150th career start in the USAC Silver Crown division. Yet Tyler has set records for more than his experience, as his 2 series wins in 2009 propelled him to 2nd in the all-time series win list, only behind a former Team 6R Racing driver, Jack Hewitt.